Jobs for journalists -  wherever you are.... emails, news..

Dr. Ayo Palmer,

Director, the Centre

for Innovation

Against Malaria,

Gambia

The Director of the Centre for Innovation Against Malaria in the Gambia, Dr. Ayo Palmer, recently donated malaria advocacy tool kits to Government National Assembly members. Dr Palmer says, "To serve the people, they must be able to respond to the needs of the people including health. With the tool kits which indicate facts and figures of malaria burden in all the administrative divisions, they should be able to know the size of malaria in their constituency, the size of the problems, the gaps and the most effective measures to eradicate malaria."

Read Lamin Dibba's article in The Observer

Freelance health writers!  A London based AIDS Charity is looking for good writers in all corners of the world. Look below for more details. Those of you who have contributed articles to the Health and Media site are welcome to include the link in your CV/resume... good luck, and, let me know how you get on. If that's not enough, they are also looking for proofreaders.

Can you pass along some information on asthma and Sickle Cell Disease to your colleague in Nigeria?

If you are near Bangalore, India, there is a health reporting course starting at the end of this month. Perhaps one of our new listserv members may be interested - two are from India and one is from neighbouring Bangladesh.

Welcome Debalina Majumder, an independent film maker from Calcutta who says, "I am working towards building a company with my partner, who is a public health professional to produce credible, creative, documentaries focusing on 'health and media'. Right now we are shooting a documentary on maternal health."

Her partner, Nasima Selim, based in Bangladesh, has also joined the listserv this week. Nasima works as an advisor in Public Health.

On the other side of India, Sapna Dogra, joins us from New Dehli. Sapna explains, "I have been reporting on health issues for the past three years and want to continue and also write more articles on developmental issues such as women health, reproductive health, public health etc."

My computer has not been too well this week so I hope that I haven't "misplaced" any emails - thanks for your contributions...

take care, Colin Lloyd, Moderator, South Africa

1. Contributions

+ Gambia's Medical Research Council invites public to open days

From: Yusupha Bojang, print journalist, the Gambia

For the first time in over a decade, the Medical Research Council (MRC), in the Gambia, is hosting a two-day Open Day programme at its Fajara compound - under the theme "Research for Better Health".

Visitors where invited to learn about the MRC's groundbreaking research into diseases such as Malaria, pneumonia, tuberculosis ,HIV and measles.

As the only medical research in the Gambia, the MRC is actively consulted by the Department of State for Health for assistance and advice on health matters and shares responsibility for national medical research co-ordination through the scientific and ethical review process.

+ Gambia carries forward HIV initiative

"Greetings from the Gambia. I wish to take this opportunity once again to
thank all of you for your invaluable contributions. Special thanks goes to the Moderator, Colin Lloyd, for his untiring efforts. Below is a health story I wish to share with you guys."

An initiative to accelerate the prevention of HIV/AIDS was launched at the Kairaba Beach Hotel in Banjul on Thursday 18th May 2006.

The initiative, launched last month in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia was to support a resolution adopted by Africa’s Ministers of Health who declare 2006 as the year for the acceleration of HIV/AIDS prevention in the African Region.

full article: www.healthandmedia.org/contribute11.html

From: Okoye Chukwuma Franklins, Hallmark Media, Nigeria

I have two friends who I have been monitoring while writing on health issues in Nigeria: 26 year old Nneka, and 29 year old Ngozi.

Nneka is suffering from acute asthma. She is allergic to many things. Apart from the inhaler which she holds firmly in her bag, she has been encouraged to visit the hospital more often. Nneka would like to go on to college to improve herself but her mother is worried that she will not get the understanding and attention she needs.

My other friend, Ngozi, recently succumb to her illness. I just returned from her funeral - she died from Sickle Cell Disease. Sickle Cell Disease has become a menace in our society. We in the media in Nigeria have been advocating for people to check their genotype and blood group before venturing into marriage.

Fellow members, Can you pass along the latest information on these diseases? I need more information in my research on both of theses topics... thanks.

2. Health News

+ Tanzania: misinformation on malaria prevention slows progress

 Although Zanzibar's Kataa Malaria initiative has reduced the malaria caseload on the island, misinformation about the safety of insecticide-treated bed nets - a cornerstone of the programme - has left many people exposed to the disease, which kills one million people around the world each year.

http://www.irinnews.org/report.asp?ReportID=53310

+ Funding boost for research into TB and malaria drugs

More on SciDevNet

The number of new HIV infections in Uganda has increased from 70,000 in 2003 to about 130,000 in 2005, Uganda AIDS Commission Director- General Kihumuro Apuuli said Thursday, the Monitor/AllAfrica.com reports. Apuuli, speaking on HIV/AIDS Vaccine Awareness Day, said that despite financial support from donors, the incidence of new HIV cases in Uganda still is increasing.

Research in Cameroon has confirmed what scientists have suspected for some years: that wild chimpanzees are the source of the human HIV/AIDS pandemic.

Health reporting course open to mid-career journalists
Experienced Indian journalists who cover health issues can apply for an upcoming training program. Application deadline: May 30.

A Bangalore-based NGO, Communication for Development and Learning, is organizing the course, which is scheduled for July 15 to 18 in southern India's scenic Biligirirangan Hills.

The training is possible through a grant from the Health Journalism Partnership (HJP), a joint initiative of the International Center for Journalists, Internews and Panos London.

For more information on the course, or to apply, contact cfdal@dataone.in or cdlblr@gmail.com.

+ UK Charity needs health writers

The UK Charity AIDSmap are looking for reliable and experienced freelance writers to contribute in the following areas: HIV treatment - writing news reports on journal publications, AIDS Treatment Updates - writing well-researched and readable articles on aspects of HIV treatment and lifestyle Global policy and advocacy. Coverage of developments in global policy and advocacy, particularly those relating to funding and prevention.

You will need to have a good understanding of the global institutions and key policy initiatives, and an ability to write engagingly on these subjects, in order to explain to non-policy specialists why recent policy developments are important.

Specialist writing on HIV vaccine development and coverage of scientific meetings where vaccine developments are reported.

Please email examples of recent writing and a CV to Keith Alcorn, Senior Editor at NAM. email: keith@nam.org.uk